Celtic manager Ronny Deila has insisted to reporters that Emilio Izaguirre remains a valued member of his squad and will not be sold despite losing his place to Kieran Tierney, as quoted on the club's official Twitter account.

The Honduran defender has not played a single minute for the Bhoys since 19 January due to the impressive form of 18-year-old Tierney, who appears to have established himself as Deila's first-choice at left-back.

So good has been Tierney's form that the youngster was named in a best European Under-18 XI compiled by Spanish outlet Marca earlier this week.

Meanwhile, at 29 years old, there was talk that Izaguirre would be looking to move on from Parkhead in order to continue playing first-team football after slipping down the pecking order.

However, the defender, who has played nearly 250 times for the club since joining in 2010, is contracted with the Bhoys until 2017 and Deila insists that he needs the experienced man in his squad.

Deila told reporters, as quoted by the club's Twitter account: "Of course he has [a future]. We can't have one full-back.

"[He is] a great player, [but there is] very tough competition on that side. Everyone can see what Kieran Tierney has done but everyone respects what Emilio has done.

"We know we have two very good full-backs so he is a player we want to keep."

Deila was speaking ahead of his side's trip to face Hamilton Academical on Friday evening as they look to strengthen their grip on the top spot in the division.

Celtic, who have won six of their last seven league matches, are six points clear of nearest rivals Aberdeen.

Tom Nightingale

After starting to write about football due to lack of any great ability on the pitch, Tom is an NCTJ-qualified sports reporter who has written for Swansea City, the Birmingham Mail, and numerous other publications. An avid Aston Villa fan, he still hasn't got over them not turning up in the 2015 FA Cup final.